Yu Daohhen watched Meng Dalong without speaking, but inwardly he chuckled: "All of us are thousand-year-old foxes, what's with the ghost stories?"
He walked over and pulled open the shop door, saying directly, "Meng Ye, just say what you need to say, no need to beat around the bush."
Meng Dalong glanced towards the backyard and said with a serious tone, "In six months, I need you to protect someone for me, and you won't even need to drink the 'invitation tea.' I know your rules; as long as one can drink three cups of invitation tea, they can stay in this shop."
The rules of the Midnight Spirit Shop were that if one could drink one cup of invitation tea, a person who could solve the problem would be introduced. If one could drink two cups, the shopkeeper would personally accompany them. There was another rule: if one could drink three cups of invitation tea, then no matter who you were or what you had done, as long as you stayed in the shop, you would be protected for forty days.
Yu Daohhen walked to the chair opposite Meng Dalong and sat down, "Meng Ye thinks too highly of me. If even someone like you, who is on the Black List, cannot protect a person, how could I, a mere shop owner, possibly do so?"
"The martial world whispers that the safest places in the world, besides Mount Mao and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple, are the Midnight Spirit Shop in Jiangdu," Meng Dalong said, casting furtive glances towards the backyard.
"Those are just empty reputations," Yu Daohhen shook his head.
Seeing Yu Daohhen's refusal, Meng Dalong reached for his saber, his eyes turning cold. "Rumor has it that six months ago, the son of Huang Yong, ranked eighth on the Black List and a renowned corpse handler, was dismembered alive. And the one who dismembered him was Xu Gensheng, ranked nineteenth on the Heaven List."
Meng Dalong continued as Yu Daohhen remained silent. "If I recall correctly, Xu Gensheng didn't drink the invitation tea either, did he? For that battle, you invited someone, and you fought Huang Yong to a draw. From that day on, the martial world gained a 'Master Yu'."
"Six months ago, in a village in western Hunan, a man passed through and took a liking to a girl. The man harbored lecherous thoughts towards the girl. That night, the man, along with two others, sneaked into the girl's home, murdered her mother, and all three of them raped the girl."
"Later, when Xu Gensheng returned home, he found his wife murdered and his daughter violated. His heart was filled with grief. He found the three men and dismembered them. Among those three was Huang Yong's son, Huang Yongcheng. Upon learning that his son had been dismembered, Huang Yong flew into a rage and personally led his men to hunt down Xu Gensheng and his daughter."
"Xu Gensheng fled with his daughter. Along the way, Xu Gensheng was severely injured. In the end, with no other options, he fled to Yu Daohhen's place. Yu Daohhen, seeing the pitiable state of Xu Gensheng and his daughter, let them stay in the shop."
"Later, Huang Yong pursued them to Jiangdu. Yu Daohhen had no choice but to invite that person, and they fought Huang Yong to a draw. After that, the matter was dropped."
Yu Daohhen stared at Meng Dalong, his eyes turning cold. "If I could fight Huang Yong to a draw, do you think I would be afraid of you?"
Meng Dalong stared back at Yu Daohhen, a murderous intent in his eyes, and threatened, "If I'm not mistaken, that person probably can't leave Jiangdu, right? I know where Xu Gensheng's daughter is. Are you sure you can stop me?"
The two men locked eyes, and the atmosphere grew tense. A deathly silence fell. Just as they were about to draw their weapons, they both burst into laughter. Yu Daohhen asked, "I want to know who it is that made Meng Erbao willingly walk to his death."
Meng Dalong remained silent, stood up, and walked towards the door, leaving behind, "Remember this, Master Yu, six months from today."
Watching Meng Dalong leave, Yu Daohhen slammed his palm onto the table. The teacups on the table vibrated from the force. He sighed, "It seems I've been played."
As he stood up to return to the backyard, a black Audi drove up and stopped by the roadside. Yu Daohhen glanced and saw a man and a woman step out. The man was short, with large dark circles under his eyes, looking like he hadn't slept for three days. In contrast, the woman was curvaceous.
The man walked into the shop and grabbed Yu Daohhen's hand. Yu Daohhen steadied him with his other hand, fearing the man might fall.
The man chuckled, revealing a large gold tooth, and introduced himself, "I'm Zhou Dafa."
Yu Daohhen looked at the man. His forehead was dark, his complexion pale and bloodless, giving him a lifeless appearance. "This guy looks like he's been drained by a female ghost," Yu Daohhen thought.
The woman beside him kept staring at Yu Daohhen. The man glanced at the woman and introduced her, "This is my sister, Zhou."
Before Zhou Dafa could finish his introduction, the woman reached out and grasped Yu Daohhen's hand. At the same time, she scratched the palm of his hand with her middle finger, a slight smile playing on her lips. "I'm Zhou Xinsi, nice to meet you."
Yu Daohhen gently tried to pull away, but Zhou Xinsi held on exceptionally tight. Seeing Yu Daohhen's attempt to break free, she rubbed his palm a few times, then brought her hand to her nose and inhaled deeply with an expression of enjoyment.
Zhou Dafa glared at Zhou Xinsi and chuckled, "Sorry, Master, my sister is just like this."
Yu Daohhen shook his head. "I'm sorry, this shop only opens at night."
Upon hearing that the shop was closed during the day, Zhou Dafa said, "We'll come back tonight," and walked out. Zhou Xinsi, seizing an opportunity when Yu Daohhen wasn't paying attention, grabbed his backside and squeezed hard. Yu Daohhen flinched and turned to see Zhou Xinsi licking her lips, "This is the touch of young meat, not bad."
Yu Daohhen glared fiercely at Zhou Xinsi, who pretended not to see him, and turned to walk towards the car. As she got into the car, she winked at Yu Daohhen. Yu Daohhen, with a blank expression, glared at Zhou Xinsi, simultaneously touching his backside, and walked into the backyard.
The backyard wasn't large. Besides Yu Daohhen's room, there was a kitchen, a bathroom, and a place to park electric scooters. The rest was filled with flowers and plants. The most prominent features were two willow trees, a peach tree, and a particularly large well.
Yu Daohhen looked at the well and sighed, "Now it's like this, they've come knocking. If I had known, I shouldn't have killed him." He then walked towards the kitchen.
Opening the second-hand refrigerator, he found five eggs, a nearly rotten cucumber, and a plate of leftover twice-cooked pork. He poured the pork and cold rice into a pot to heat them up, and made a cucumber and egg soup. This was Yu Daohhen's usual meal.
Looking at the empty stool, he gave a bitter smile and shook his head, then started eating from his bowl.
After washing the dishes, as usual, he lit the clay stove and placed the teapot on it to heat slowly. He then lay down in the rocking chair, and time passed little by little. Gradually, the sky began to darken.
Before long, an Audi stopped in front of the shop. Zhou Dafa and Zhou Xinsi got out of the car. Yu Daohhen didn't look at Zhou Xinsi and instead asked them to sit down, while he sat opposite them.